


Snowflake

by Lily_Amazon



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fashion & Models, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Character Study, Gen, Genderfuck Buggy, Mentioned Izo, Modeling AU, Self-Reflection, Short One Shot, not that joyful but not that gloom either
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-05 06:13:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25345999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lily_Amazon/pseuds/Lily_Amazon
Summary: "He wasn't that famous but he was a master at playing pretend. He learned from the best. The good old "fake it till you make it" refrain. How many times had he danced to that tune while gatecrashing parties, gnawing at crumbs of celebrity?"A short reflexive piece on Buggy, inspired by a fanart on Tumblr.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 11





	Snowflake

It started when someone yelled after him in a crowded street and called him "Miss", to give him back the wallet that had fallen from his back pocket. Clean and loose, his long blue and slightly wavy hair had been enough to warrant the confusion. That and his lean figure.

Passing as a female had never bothered him. It even came with its perks when the bouncers weren't looking that closely. After moving out to attend university, he started wearing makeup on a daily basis. He pierced his ears, bought and wore the flashy clothes his younger self had always dreamed of. He cultivated an outgoing and bratty persona that soon had him surrounded with people. The red nose he donned on occasions was quite the ice-breaker.

Months after the wallet incident, during a party, an agent gave him a business card, interested in his profile for a modeling agency. His friends, his flock, cheered at the perspective. They were already bragging about knowing a celebrity and begging him not to forget them once he'd be famous. He laughed and agreed, making them buy another round of drinks for him as a good luck present.

Turns out it was a peculiar kind of modeling agency. The queer and gender bender kind. He didn't mind. He saw the opportunity and... After what he told his friends, his cohort, he couldn't really back down anyway.  
He posed for photographs, paraded for fashion designers, danced on podiums for party planners... Even took the nickname of Captain and started wearing _épaulettes_ as his agent wanted him to play the bossy card. The success of Izo's cold beauty - a facade really, the man was the sweetest bean once you got to know him - had given the mood orientation to the agency for the upcoming season.  
Him and Doflamingo. That feathery bastard and his spandex pants were something else... Almost as dazzling as he was smug. Wearing cherubs when he was everything but a choirboy. Eros on the other hand... It fitted the bill. If you were into the aggressive type that is.  
Always where you wouldn't expect him...  
Buggy saw his tacky red wine ad - _Château Meyne Déesse_ or something? - on his last subway ride. His rival had an heightened sense for dramatics and sure knew how to play his cards right. Everyone wanted a minute of his time. His sneer and flexing veins did them all in. Mean had suddenly become the new cool. Go figure...

He was no match to them but they weren't exactly in the same category. His androgynous look offered him other paths. He mixed hair clips with a three-day stubble, showed his muscular biceps along golden and clinking bracelets, wore a high ponytail revealing his manly sideburns. He normalized his looks or broke the norm. Whichever. It hadn't been his primary intention. He'd never planned on becoming a symbol or anything. But the agency had, and was pleased.

He liked the attention. Even if his debut had been less than stellar, he had his little share of the audience and signed contracts nonetheless. It paid the bills and some more. They started with the clown thing and it was achingly easy to be in character. But better being seen as the stupid goof than not being seen at all.

He wasn't that famous but he was a master at playing pretend. He learned from the best. The good old "fake it till you make it" refrain. How many times had he danced to that tune while gatecrashing parties, gnawing at crumbs of celebrity?  
He started smoking and making conscious fashion statements. Wearing striped leggings under his ripped jeans. Crop tops revealing his narrow hips and those abs he never really worked on. Trying to obtain the lifestyle through the look and the attitude. Strutting in camel high heels, getting stoned and smashed at concerts and parties. Waking up in rooms he couldn't remember getting in, pieces of his body feeling oddly disconnected...

He found it both satisfying and scary. His friends, his party, called it cool and gutsy. So he went on. He lived for the praise, for that little something bigger than himself that made him feel so important.  
Impostor syndrome set aside, he knew it was all a matter of luck. The odds had rarely played in his favor for long... But he intended to make the most of it until it ran out.

**Author's Note:**

> This one-shot stems from [this fanart](https://glooumnastas.tumblr.com/post/623233100765396994/im-just-in-love-with-this-guys) by [Glooum Nastas](https://glooumnastas.tumblr.com), featuring Buggy and Doflamingo in gorgeous outfits. Buggy really did make an impression on me, with his almost androgynous look, so my brain decided to work on a little something. Funny thing is I don't really like Buggy, but it was nice trying to fit in some little details about him!  
> For further reference, while talking about Buggy's ponytail, I had [this stunning fanart from Ellie](https://elliemehl.tumblr.com/post/618321785351520256/hey-i-saw-that-youre-ask-box-is-open-and-i-love) in mind. The hair texture and those sideburns ah...
> 
> Another little allusion/trivia with Doffy and wine: in the manga (chap. 763) he's drinking from a bottle labelled "Déesse" while there's a big close-up on the wine bottle in the anime (ep. 702) where we can read "Château Meyne". My French-self thought it funny to mix both. 
> 
> Anyway, thanks for dropping by! **Feedback is welcome and cherished here so don't be shy.**  
>  Edit 18/07 : minor correcting, thanks to lovely Harmonica Smile!


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